Section I (Starts on P s2

Whole-Class/Group Assessment

Answer Key

Skateboarder Jailed for Riding on City Street

Getting Ready to Read • Set a purpose • Ask questions • Predict

1. Before you start to read, look at the title, pictures, and headings.

What do you think this selection is mainly about?

Write two questions that you think might be answered in this selection.

Possible Student Response(s): Effective readers generate predictions and questions before, during, and after reading. This ongoing dialogue with the page prepares students for the material they are about to read. It prompts them to start gathering information while they are reading, and it deepens their understanding of what they have read.

Lower level predictions and questions (Level 1 and Level 2) do not attempt to preview the content of the selection. For example:

• Why the skateboarder should go to jail

• What was the skateboarder’s name?

• Where did it happen?

Higher level predictions and questions (Level 3 and Level 4) demonstrate logical and sometimes insightful thinking. For example:

• I think it’s about a man who went to jail to make a point about skateboarding on the street.

• Why is skateboarding illegal?

• Why did the man refuse to pay the fine?

• Did a lot of people support the skateboarder or not?

Thinking / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Comprehension Strategies: Uses text features and activates prior knowledge to make predictions and/or ask questions / Limited use of text features; predictions/
questions are vague or irrelevant; may be “guesses” / Some use of text features; predictions/
questions are simple and obvious / Considerable use of text features; predictions/questions are logical and detailed / Thorough use of text features; predictions/ questions are logical, detailed, and insightful

Responses require students to make connections to their prior knowledge and experiences with clues in the text features.
All rubrics are for teacher use only.

Note to teachers: Use the Individual Reading Profile (Appendix D, p. 348) to summarize students’ results.

Engaging in Reading • Find important ideas • Summarize • Make notes

2. Make notes on the information in this report by filling in the 5W chart below. Include the most important information and enough details to show that you understood the selection.

Possible Student Response(s): Responses will vary. A Level 3 response is generally accurate and complete, but may miss some important details. Students may state their answers in different ways, and are not required to use sentences. When evaluating responses, ensure that the details are specific and clearly related to the questions. Responses do not have to include all the information to reach Level 3, and they may have minor errors.

Question / Information from the report
Who? / • Lee Breen
• 25 years old
• Skateboarder
Where? / • Fredericton, New Brunswick
When? / • April 2008
What? / • Got a ticket for skateboarding on the street
• Refused to pay fine
• Went to jail
Why? / • Uses skateboard because it does not pollute
• Refused to pay fine because he thought he was right
Knowledge and Understanding / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Demonstrating Understanding:
Summarizes important ideas using written text and visual/graphic information; cites variety of details that supports the main idea / Limited: largely inaccurate/incomplete
• may provide one main idea; often confuses main idea and supporting details
• some relevant supporting details
• omits key information / Partial: somewhat accurate
• most main ideas; some may be vaguely expressed
• some relevant supporting details
• often has too much or too little information / Considerable: generally accurate
• main ideas adequately expressed
• most relevant supporting details
• appropriate amount of information / Thorough: accurate and comprehensive
• all main ideas clearly and concisely expressed
• relevant supporting details
• effective amount of information (may be synthesized)

Responses require students to connect their own experiences with text clues.

Communication / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Organizing Ideas:
Organizes information using a graphic organizer / Limited organization and clarity;
unstructured and hard to follow / Some organization and clarity; generally easy to follow / Considerable organization and clarity; structured and easy to follow / High degree of organization and clarity; highly effective

Engaging in Reading • Infer • Visualize • Find important ideas

3. What qualities or characteristics does Mr. Breen show by his actions and words? List three qualities or characteristics that you think he has and give a reason or evidence for each choice.

Possible Student Response(s): Responses will vary. A Level 3 response will be logical and relate to the ideas in the text. For example:

Mr. Breen’s qualities / My reasons or evidence
• Stubborn / • Kept skateboarding after he was warned
• Cares about environment / • Rides a skateboard so he doesn’t pollute
• Stands up for what is right / • Went to jail to prove a point

Other possible responses:

• Careful / He wears a helmet and signals when he turns.

• Popular / Lots of people came to support him.

• Close to his family / He talked to his dad about the fine.

Thinking / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Making Inferences/ Interpreting Text:
Explains inferences supported by text evidence and logical reasoning / Limited: makes simple, unsupported inferences; may be illogical / Partial: makes simple, reasonable inferences with some support / Considerable: makes and supports logical inferences / Highly effective: makes and supports logical, insightful inferences

Responses require students to understand implicit information in the text.

Communication / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Communicating Clearly:
Explanations are well-organized and clearly expressed / Limited organization and clarity / Some organization and clarity / Considerable organization and clarity / High degree of organization and clarity

Reacting to Reading • Make connections • Synthesize • Evaluate

4. In your opinion, who was right: Mr. Breen and his supporters or the law against skateboarding? Explain your answer using information from this selection and your own ideas. Make sure you have at least two or three reasons to support your opinion.

Possible Student Response(s): Responses will vary. When assessing students’ responses, consider the three main categories of connections: text to self (TS); text to text (TT); and text to world (TW). Students most commonly make connections between the text and their own experiences. They may also make connections between the current text and other things they have read or viewed. However, when students access background knowledge that looks beyond their own experiences and textual references, more complex and sophisticated connections occur, which results in deeper comprehension.

A Level 3 response provides thoughtful reasons, makes logical connections, and uses both text information and prior knowledge. For example:

I think Mr. Breen was right. He had good reasons for skateboarding on the street. It is better for the environment because there is no pollution. It also cuts down on noise. And it is a lot cheaper. A lot of people can’t afford cars, and they could use skateboards to get to school or to work. I think it is just like riding a bicycle, which is legal. Just make a law that you have to wear a helmet and obey the traffic laws.

Application / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Extends Understanding; Responds to/Evaluates Text: Connects ideas in the text to own ideas/experiences, other texts, and the world around him or her;
makes and supports judgments and conclusions / Limited:
• has difficulty making connections
• offers unsupported or illogical judgments or conclusions / Somewhat effective:
• makes simple, obvious connections with some explanation
• offers some reasonable judgments or conclusions with partial support / Considerably effective:
• makes and explains some logical connections
• offers reasonable judgments and conclusions with adequate support / Highly effective:
• makes and explains thoughtful and insightful connections that may go beyond own experiences
• offers thoughtful, often insightful, judgments and conclusions with thorough support

Responses require students to make connections between text information and their own experiences.

Reacting to Reading • Reflect on strategies (Metacognition)

5. Good readers know how to solve problems and understand what they read. Here are some strategies they use. Check all the strategies you used to help you read and understand this selection.

q Reread q Read between the lines q Make predictions

q Ask questions q Think about what they already know q Read more slowly

q Make pictures in q Use information in pictures, maps,

their minds charts, and graphs

Look back at the selction. Find a place where you used one of the reading strategies to help you understand the selection or answer one of the questions. Tell how it helped you.

Possible Student Response(s): There are many possible responses. This section is designed to see if students are aware of their reading processes. All readers process text as they read; some do so more effectively than others. Effective readers are strategic and reflective about their reading. In other words, they utilize their metacognition skills. They strategically plan, monitor, and evaluate their reading processes. When evaluating this question, look for evidence of these skills. Students may identify some of the following comprehension strategies, as well as some of those listed above, in their explanations.

• Preview—look the text over carefully before starting

• Think about what’s important

• Make connections to own experiences or other texts

• Look back for details

If students respond with “I did not use a strategy,” they lack metacognitive awareness. Therefore, because these students lack awareness of their own reading processes and are unable to explain their thinking, the response would be Level 1. For students to achieve Level 3, they should identify a specific strategy and explain how it helped. For example:

Strategy I used: I read it three times.

How it helped me: I got confused about the order of how things happened. The part about Mr. Breen being careful didn’t seem to fit where it was. So I read it again two more times. Then I figured out that it is an explaining part, not really about what happened next.

Thinking / Level 1 / Level 2 / Level 3 / Level 4
Metacognition:
Reflects on own reading processes; describes a strategy and how it worked / Limited: lacks awareness of own reading processes and comprehension strategies; does not describe or explain thinking / Somewhat effective: has basic awareness of own reading processes and comprehension strategies; attempts to describe thinking (basic) / Considerably effective: shows awareness of own reading processes and comprehension strategies; explains thinking / Highly effective: shows insight into own reading processes and comprehension strategies; clearly articulates thinking

Responses require students to reflect on their strategy use and connect it to the text.